# Brian Murphy (actor)
**Brian Trevor John Murphy** (25 September 1932 – 2 February 2025) was an English comedy actor best known for playing the henpecked landlord George Roper in the ITV sitcom *Man About the House* (1973–1976) and its spin-off *George and Mildred* (1976–1979), and later Alvin Smedley in *Last of the Summer Wine*.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) He died at his home in Kent, aged 92.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) The Actors' Trust obituary gives the date of death as 1 February 2025, while the Guardian, IMDb, and other obituaries give 2 February.[2](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | 25 September 1932, Ventnor, Isle of Wight; 2 February 2025, Kent (aged 92)[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) |
| Breakthrough role | George Roper in *Man About the House*, Thames Television, six series 1973–1976[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) |
| Spin-off | *George and Mildred*, five series 1976–1979, peaking at up to 20 million UK viewers[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) |
| Later signature role | Alvin Smedley in *Last of the Summer Wine*, 2003–2010, 77 episodes[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) |
| Training | National service with the RAF at Northwood; RADA, left after one year for financial reasons[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) |
| Marriages | Carol Gibson (married 1957, two sons); actor Linda Regan (married 1995)[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) |
| Charity work | Trustee of Actors' Trust (formerly the Actors' Benevolent Fund) for over 30 years[2](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/) |
## Early life and theater
Murphy was born in Ventnor on the [Isle of Wight](https://www.edgepedia.org/isle-of-wight), the youngest of three brothers of Gerald and Mabel Murphy, who ran restaurants.[2](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) After national service with the [Royal Air Force](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-air-force) at Northwood HQ, where he befriended the aspiring actor [Richard Briers](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-briers), he studied at RADA but left after a year when the money he had saved ran out.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) • [4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/brian_murphy/features/brian-murphy-on-george-mildred/)
He then joined Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East, where his fellow members included his future television partner [Yootha Joyce](https://www.edgepedia.org/yootha-joyce) and Carol Gibson, whom he married in 1957.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) • [4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/brian_murphy/features/brian-murphy-on-george-mildred/) His stage debut came as Drinkwater in a 1956 production of Shaw's *Captain Brassbound's Conversion*; he appeared in the stage and film versions of Littlewood's *Sparrows Can't Sing* (the 1963 film starring [Barbara Windsor](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbara-windsor) and [James Booth](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-booth)) and in *Oh, What a Lovely War*, which transferred to Broadway from September 1964 to January 1965.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/)
## George Roper and stardom
From 1960 Murphy worked steadily as a supporting television actor, with parts in dramas including *The Avengers* and *Z-Cars*.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-actor-george-and-mildred-dies) His breakthrough came in 1973 with *Man About the House*, written by Johnnie Mortimer and Brian Cooke for Thames Television, in which three young flatmates ([Richard O'Sullivan](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-osullivan), Sally Thomsett, and [Paula Wilcox](https://www.edgepedia.org/paula-wilcox)) shared a flat above the landlords George and Mildred Roper, played by Murphy and Joyce.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) The show was considered controversial at the time because it featured two single women living with a man.[6](https://news.sky.com/story/actor-and-comedian-brian-murphy-dies-13302770)
[The Ropers](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-ropers) became the show's stars, and the spin-off *George and Mildred*, written by the same pair for Thames, ran for five series from 1976 to 1979, attracting up to 20 million viewers at its peak.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) The Guardian obituary described Murphy's screen persona as a "ferret-faced and crafty-eyed loser" whose feeble, dim characters were played with strength and intelligence, and noted that he and Joyce, close friends since their [Theatre Workshop](https://www.edgepedia.org/theatre-workshop) days, were a natural pairing.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) The series ended when Joyce, an alcoholic, died in 1980 at the age of 53, with Murphy at her bedside; a planned sixth series was never made.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) The characters crossed the Atlantic: the American adaptations *Three's Company* and *The Ropers* were based on the British shows.[7](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/brian-murphy-man-house-george-160926388.html)
Murphy said he had come to terms with being identified with the role, noting that his established theater reputation meant wider fame simply brought him more stage opportunities.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary)
## Later career
Two starring sitcom vehicles after Joyce's death, *The Incredible Mr Tanner* (ITV, 1981), in which he played a bungling escapologist, and *L for Lester* ([BBC Two](https://www.edgepedia.org/bbc-two), 1982), as driving instructor Lester Small, both failed for lack of ratings.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) • [3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) In 1982 he had a personal stage triumph as the music-hall drag star Arthur Lucan in [Alan Plater](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-plater)'s *On Your Way, Riley*.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary)
Ensemble and character work kept him employed for the rest of his life: an ineffectual private detective in *Lame Ducks* (1984–1985), conman George Manners in *[Brookside](https://www.edgepedia.org/brookside-tv-series)*, the forgetful neighbor Arthur Capstick in *Mrs Merton & Malcolm* (1999), parts in *One Foot in the Grave*, *The Bill*, *Casualty*, *The Catherine Tate Show*, and *Benidorm*, and Maurice in *The Booze Cruise* (2003).[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) • [2](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/) From 2003 to 2010 he played the practical-joking Alvin Smedley in 77 episodes of *Last of the Summer Wine*, moving into the late Compo's house next to Nora Batty after [Bill Owen](https://www.edgepedia.org/bill-owen-actor)'s death; he called the show, which he had admired as a viewer, the world's longest-running sitcom.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/) • [4](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/brian_murphy/features/brian-murphy-on-george-mildred/)
He worked into his 80s, appearing in *Holby City* and *Casualty*, voicing Mr Lovelybuns in the animated series *Claude*, and filming a comedy series as late as November 2024; he was due to begin a feature film, *The Last Goodbye*, directed by Jason Figgis, with his wife [Linda Regan](https://www.edgepedia.org/linda-regan).[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-actor-george-and-mildred-dies)
## Personal life and recognition
Murphy married Carol Gibson in 1957; the marriage ended in divorce, and in 1995 he married the actor Linda Regan, whom he had met when they played a married couple in the sitcom *Wife Begins at Forty* (1988).[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) • [8](https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/brian-murphy-dies-92-actor-man-about-the-house-b1208995.html) He is survived by Regan and his sons Trevor and Kevin.[1](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary) He served as a Trustee of Actors' Trust, the actors' charity formerly known as the Actors' Benevolent Fund, for over 30 years.[2](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/) His friend and agent Thomas Bowington described him as a "truly joyful and profoundly good-hearted man".[6](https://news.sky.com/story/actor-and-comedian-brian-murphy-dies-13302770)
## References
1. [Brian Murphy obituary, The Guardian (4 February 2025)](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-obituary)
2. [Brian Murphy (1932–2025), Actors' Trust obituary](https://www.actorstrust.org.uk/news/brian-murphy-1932-2025/)
3. [Brian Murphy Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0614120/bio/)
4. [Brian Murphy interview on George & Mildred, British Comedy Guide (2021)](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/brian_murphy/features/brian-murphy-on-george-mildred/)
5. [Brian Murphy, actor best known for George and Mildred, dies aged 92, The Guardian/PA (4 February 2025)](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/04/brian-murphy-actor-george-and-mildred-dies)
6. [Actor and comedian Brian Murphy dies aged 92, Sky News (4 February 2025)](https://news.sky.com/story/actor-and-comedian-brian-murphy-dies-13302770)
7. [Brian Murphy, 'Man About the House' and 'George and Mildred' Star, Dies at 92, Yahoo Entertainment](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/brian-murphy-man-house-george-160926388.html)
8. [Who is Brian Murphy? Man About the House actor dies aged 92, The Standard](https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/brian-murphy-dies-92-actor-man-about-the-house-b1208995.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › English actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames L to M*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license